Topic 2 新建的公共设施

1. Are public facilities important?
Yes, I believe they’re really important. Public facilities help create a healthy and happy society. Some of them meet our basic needs11, like hospitals. Others give us a sense of security and safety, like police stations. Without those facilities, it would be hard to live peacefully. Plus, some others help build community, like libraries. So public facilities definitely help society function properly12.

2. What are the public facilities near your home?
Well, I don’t live downtown, so there aren’t many public facilities near my house. But I know there’s a hospital close by. That’s a relief in case13 I ever get hurt. It’s good to know that help isn’t too far away. I think there’s also a police station around my house. It definitely makes me feel safe when I sleep at night.

3. What are the differences between public facilities used by young people and old people?
I think young people always use public facilities that match their lifestyles. They tend to be very active and outgoing. So they like using recreational centers14 or public gyms. They like places that help them stay energetic and stay fit. But old people like more relaxed places. They don’t like noises and crowds.So they use more basic facilities15 like libraries.

4. Are new public facilities better than old ones?
I suppose that in general, new public facilities are better than old ones. They tend to be higher quality because they’ve been built more recently. The buildings and equipment are usually nicer. They also have more updated technology16. For facilities like hospitals, quality is really important. But we don’t have to get rid of17 all the old facilities. They can still be useful to society.

5. What’s the difference between facilities in the countryside and the ones in the cities?
It seems to me that facilities in the countryside aren’t as developed. There are probably just hospitals and police stations. I don’t think there are more modern facilities like gyms or recreational centers. The public facilities might not be as high-quality either. As far as I know, many small towns and villages in China don’t even have enough of a budget to buy expensive equipment. But when it comes to cities, public facilities usually need to cater to18 a larger number of people, so they have to be bigger and higher-quality.

11 meet our basic needs：满足基本需求
12 help society function properly：帮助社会正常运转
13 That’s a relief in case…: 如果…的话，我会很放心，很放松
14 recreational centers：娱乐中心
15 basic facilities：基础设施
16 more updated technology：更多更新的技术
17 get rid of：除去，舍弃掉
18 cater to：为…服务